After Renee Story’s daughter’s flight was canceled, the determined mother’s positive thinking got her daughter home. Alanah Story was set for a 7PM flight from Orlando to Knoxville when her flight was delayed and ultimately canceled. Frontier Airlines was unable to give stranded passengers assurances that they would be able to fly out that night.
While at the help desk, Renee met Carlos, a police officer who was also heading to Knoxville for a 10:00 AM appointment with his daughter the next morning at a university. The two agreed that they could rent a van to drive there. They then suggested the idea to several passengers and they were able to gather a group of 13.
Alanah said “I was off to one side because I didn’t want to be involved, my mom just turned to me and said ‘we’re headed downstairs to get a van, come on people! Like 13 people followed her, I was just wondering what was happening.” Among the rest of the group were Johan and Adolf, from Mexico, Michelle, who was headed to a farming convention in Knoxville as a keynote speaker, and Q, who was simply trying to get home.
The strangers each chipped in $60 to rent a 15 passenger van and headed out on a road trip.
In the end, all the passengers managed to keep their appointments, Carlos’ daughter made it to the university appointment and Michelle was able to deliver her speech as the keynote speaker. Carlos posted a video to tiktok explaining “We made our 10:00 AM appointment, all because of a community that came together.”
But what started as a 650 mile journey of convenience, paced over 10 hours, ended with some brand new friendships. Alanah made friends with Q, who lives in Knoxville, and the two are planning on going out for karaoke soon. Carlos’ wife Lauren and Alanah’s mother Renee have also kept in touch.
Alanah said “It was not a quiet ride, no one was getting any sleep on that drive, I think I slept around 20 minutes. I really couldn’t have picked a better group of people to make the trip with. The whole experience really confirmed my faith in humanity for a little bit, in the States right now we’re going through a period of division, so it was nice to see.”
Read more
Aero Angel is a charity organization that provides free flights for chronically ill children. The national aviation charity provides free flights using private jets flown by a crew of volunteer, professional pilots. Commercial airline travel is sometimes not a safe option because of a child’s illness and if specialists aren’t available in an ill child’s area, that can mean repeated trips farther away to seek expert care.
Aero Angel fills that gap, allowing children to get treatment they may not have had the option for without the transportation. They offer unlimited free flights to children in need of private transportation to appointments at specialist medical centers. The service is nationwide, and last year alone made about 70 flights. Aero Angel is not an air ambulance service and limits its flights to children whose fragile medical conditions mean commercial flying is not an option.
Brittany Baillargeon, Aero Angel’s Special Projects Director said families that need long distance transportation can just go to the website aeroangel.org, and fill out a flight request form and upload a letter of medical necessity. It’s free to all families whose children can’t fly commercial and all of the costs are covered through donors. The flights are provided to families until the service is no longer needed. While there is no set minimum mileage requirement, most of the flights are at least 500 miles long from the child’s home to their destination. The business jets flown have a non-stop range of 4 hours or about 2,000 miles.
Based in Denver, Colorado, AeroAngel was founded by Denver attorney and commercial pilot Mark Pestal. His passion for aviation and a desire to help others led him to create a unique model of using volunteer professional pilots to families who desperately need it. Operating a high performance jet aircraft is expensive and requires a huge amount of resources. Through sponsors, donations and volunteers-these angels in the sky have been serving communities across the US for more than 11 years.
Read more
A dog lover in Clayton, Yorkshire, has been hailed a hero for using her drone to reunite families with their lost pups. Erica Hart believes she’s rescued more than 200 dogs in the last seven years. She started a Facebook group called ieye drone where users share lost dog posts and Erica heads to missing pups’ last known location to try to locate them. She shares the happy endings on her page.
When a pet owner contacts Hart, she meets them near the last location they were spotted and uses the drone to guide them to their pet. People also post sightings of loose dogs and Hart heads there to help round them up so they can eventually be reunited with their owner. “Once that drone’s above the dog, it’s not going anywhere because I can guide people in quick enough. It’s like a military operation.”
She doesn’t charge any money for the service and says she does it purely for the love of dogs – even if it means spending money on fuel for her car instead of treating herself. “I’ve gone without stuff for myself to put petrol in the car to find a dog. When I post the happy ending on Facebook and I see the comments I lay in bed with a smile on my face and realize why I do it.”
Hart’s work has saved countless animal lives and often, she’s able to quickly cover ground that would take hours for a traditional search team which can make the difference between a safe recovery and a tragic loss.
Read more
Cardi B donated $100,000 to her old middle school in the Bronx. The rapper returned to her alma mater to surprise students and staff at IS 232 in the Bronx on Sept. 13. She announced her donation and answered questions from staff and students. She was joined by New York City schools chancellor David C. Banks and K. Bain, the founder and executive director of Community Capacity Development, a nonprofit social justice organization.
Cardi later shared two videos from the visit on Instagram and wrote “ “I was trying to do this last year but couldn’t because of all the COVID rules at the time. This middle school, IS 232 in the Bronx, has a very special place in my heart!! It turned me from an 11 year old girl into a little teenage adult. Kids in the Bronx have to grow up quickly due to our circumstances and our environment. While some young teens like around 11-13 still live in that Disney world, these kids have to grow up fast and QUICK.”
The rapper continued, “Like a lot of these kids I went through so much while I was going to school here. Experiences that changed me forever and made me who I am today. I hope my donation can help create an amazing after school program that will help kids stay out the streets or a troubled home and most importantly allow them to learn something that they can take with them through LIFE. Thank you Community Capacity Development @ccdworldwide and K. Bain for partnering with me to also visit different schools and programs in Queens and Brooklyn. I love being able to help young kids however I can and I can’t waiiiittttt to tell y’all what I’ve been working on for the past two years. It’s something super close to my heart and I can’t wait to share very soon.”
This isn’t the first time Cardi B has shown her generosity. She paid the funeral expenses for the 17 people who lost their lives in a devastating Bronx apartment fire in January. Her representatives said the rapper made sure that all of the victims’ families were included in her donation and that the final wishes for their loved ones were met.
Read more
American novelist and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated two Beverly Hills homes to charity for a total of $55 million. The California Community Foundation (CCF), a nonprofit philanthropic organization based in Los Angeles announced that Scott, 52, donated “two single-family residences valued at $55 million” to the foundation in July. The gated 2.5 acre compound includes a 12,000 square foot main residence built in the 1990s, a 4,500 square foot guesthouse, a swimming pool, a full size tennis court and 6 car garage.
The first home was purchased by Scott and her ex-husband Jeff Bezos in 2007 for $24.45 million. The second home was purchased by the couple in 2017 for $12.9 million. The CCF hopes to quickly sell the high-maintenance spread, with the proceeds going towards affordable housing projects and an immigrant integration program. “The cost of housing stands out as one of the most critical issues affecting the lives of millions of Los Angeles residents. A priority for Ms. Scott, the primary focus of the $55 million will be to permanently endow grantmaking efforts to benefit Angelenos in need of affordable housing,” CCF said in a statement.
CCF has been an advocacy leader for increased affordable housing production, helping lead the passage of Proposition HHH, an initiative to add 10,000 new units in the City of Los Angeles by 2026. Los Angeles is poised to exceed its target by funding 10,510 units in 178 projects. Scott’s gift will permanently support the expansion of these grantmaking efforts. This is the second time Scott has donated to the organization, giving the nonprofit $20 million last year to create the LA Arts Endowment Fund.
Scott, whose estimated net worth is $37 billion makes her the 29th richest person in the world. Scott still owns 4% of Amazon after selling $8.5 billion in company stocks. After her divorce from Jeff Bezos, Scott signed the Giving Pledge, promising to donate at least half of her wealth over her lifetime, and has since gifted billions of her dollars to large and small organizations dedicated to social equity. She has so far donated more than $12 billion to charitable causes and groups as part of the Giving Pledge. Earlier this year, Scott donated $436 million to Habitat for Humanity. Last year she announced donations of $2.7 billion to nearly 300 organizations.
Read more
#BeKind21 Kindness Challenge is an invitation for you to practice kindness toward yourself and others each day from September 1 to September 21 to build kinder, more connected communities that foster mental wellness. Inspired by the idea that habits are formed by repeating an activity for 21 consecutive days, Born This Way Foundation annually hosts #BeKind21 and invites participants to build a habit of kindness.
Those who sign up pledge to be kind to themselves and their community and share their experiences on social media using the hashtag #BeKind21. Born This Way Foundation, founded in 2011 by Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia Germanotta launched #BeKind21 with the aim to make kindness cool, validate the emotions of young people, and eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health.
#BeKind21 had more than 6.8 million people last year who collectively pledged and encouraged over 143 million acts of kindness in just 21 days. Over 400 partners, including entire school districts, cities, nonprofits, and corporations, participated in the campaign and helped to spread the word. The annual program is now in its fifth year and has generated over 291 million pledged acts of kindness since it’s launch in 2018.
Read more
A Pennsylvania retiree is cultivating a garden and her community. Jeri “Momma J” Brockington, of Ambler, PA started Momma J’s Country Gardening as a way to teach her friends and neighbors how to grow vegetables and plants. Her memories of her great-grandmother picking and giving away vegetables from her own garden inspired her.
Brockington said as soon as she bought her home, she visualized using every area of the space to grow food. She went door to door introducing herself and encouraging neighbors to grow their own food. Her neighbors know they are always welcome to come over for some fresh produce or to pick up a new gardening tip. Brockington said it’s the smiles and sense of community that motivates her.
She encourages people to think back to a simpler time and learn how to provide for one another. In the wake of pandemic lockdowns and the September 2021 tornado, it’s become more important to her than ever.”These are times when the only way we’re going to get through it is that we work together,” Brockington said.
She also records educational videos for her YouTube page, encouraging followers on social media to post pictures of their own crops. “You can frequently go for years without knowing any of your neighbors,” said neighbor Frank Dunsmore. “And whenever I came down to this area, she was one of the few people that was always around. I’m not the kind of person who grows plants, but she’s done an amazing job with gardening and stuff like that,” said Dunsmore. “If knowledge is power, she’s giving it away.”
Read more
Since 2009, LA-based non-profit, Food Forward has rerouted 250 million pounds of food from landfills and delivered over a billion servings of fresh produce to food insecure communities.
The non-profit helps reroute perishable produce to communities in need of more fresh fruits and veggies all over the country. A combination of inflationary governmental fiscal policy and the centrally-planned response to COVID-19 has really damaged the ability of rural or food-desert-based communities to buy fresh produce.
Food Forward has mastered the logistical challenge of rerouting produce destined for landfills. Southern California is the largest exporter and importer of produce in the country, making the non-profit centrally located where there is a great need. From its refrigerated food distribution center in south east LA, the group works with 350 direct partners coordinating food donations, which have so far made it out to 12 California counties, six other states, and two Tribal nations. Coming out of the centrally-planned chaos of the pandemic, Food Forward feels they are getting a grip on the demand for fresh produce rather than reacting to it in difficult or emergency circumstances.
CEO Rick Nahmias said “We understood workflows well enough, we understood efficiencies, we understood the network and how food flows through the L.A. area, the contiguous county, and the region. We’re all kind of under this umbrella, feeling like the last 10 years for Food Forward were a dress rehearsal for the pandemic.” Nahmias said among the many problems in this line of work, is the fact that often the food has just days of shelf life left.
Food Forward’s Wholesale Produce Recovery program staff rescue fresh fruits and vegetables from wholesale vendors by the truckload to prevent this unnecessary waste. The Farmers Market Recovery program prevents quality produce from being wasted, and provides a solution to farmers who have unsold produce and want to help fight hunger. A single market can yield over 2,000 pounds of seasonal produce that in many cases is organic. The Backyard Harvest program connects generous homeowners with volunteers ready to harvest surplus fruit on hundreds of private properties, public parks, orchards, and farms throughout Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
Nahmias credits his team’s nimbleness and excellent reactivity to the success that saw them win 2018 CA non-profit of the year. Their operation is so tight that every $1 donated allows them to redirect 10 pounds of produce from restaurants, grocery stores, or farms before sending them to communities that rarely get to buy fresh produce. Keeping perishing produce out of landfills also reduces methane gas emissions from its decomposition, reducing America’s methane footprint after about ten years.
Read more
California has become the first state to implement a statewide Universal Meals Program for all public school children. The Universal Meals program will be used to reach more students with the federal National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. The Meal Mandate is expanded to include both a nutritious breakfast and lunch for, not just needy children, but all children each school day.
The Universal Meals program is designed to build on the foundations of the federal National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP). The program is powered by both state and federal funds. The California State Legislature allocates funds to provide additional state meal reimbursement to cover the cost of the Universal Meals Program. High poverty schools will be required to participate in a federal provision.
Prior to this program, students qualified for free meals under particular criteria which included aspects like their parents’ income taxes, the level of poverty in the school’s surrounding area and the zip code where the family lives. With over 327,000 students in California public schools, 60% of students qualified for free school meals.
The state recently implemented the Universal Program to address rising food insecurity. While California produces nearly half of the nation’s fruits and vegetables, on average one in five residents — about 8 million people — struggle with food insecurity, according to the California Association of Food Banks.
Now, with the state launching the mandatory Universal Meals Program, parents will be sure that their children can get at least two free, full meals at schools daily and not have to incur the expense for preparing breakfast and lunch for them. All students will be automatically enrolled in the program, although students will not be required to participate. Instead, meals will be served to the students who ask for them.
Read more
An 18 year old lifeguard is being hailed a hero after delivering a baby on a pool deck. Natalie Lucas, who’s been a lifeguard for 3 years, was working her morning shift at the YMCA of Northern Colorado when a woman’s water broke. Tessa Rider was nine months pregnant with her third child and a few days past her due date. Rider and her husband, Matthew Jones, were visiting their local Y — about five minutes from their home in Longmont, Colo. — for a swim on July 24.
The couple said they knew the baby was coming but didn’t know if it was going to be a week, two weeks, or today. Rider slipped into the pool at around 10:45 a.m. and said she felt a sense of complete relaxation but the 30 seconds of calm swiftly shifted to chaos. She said she suddenly felt the need to push. She instructed her husband who was scrolling casually on his phone on the pool deck to grab their things and meet at the car. That plan quickly went awry when she took two steps out of the pool and collapsed onto all fours with her water breaking as she hit the ground.
Within seconds, she felt a sensation that the baby was coming out. Lucas — who was the sole lifeguard on duty at the time — sprinted over and saw Jones rubbing his wife’s back while on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. Jones told the teen “We’re having a baby,” and before he could give the 911 operator any details, he saw the baby crowning. Lucas said her adrenaline kicked in and she immediately grabbed towels and an emergency first-aid kit. She used a walkie talkie to alert other staff of the situation and asked a man who was swimming laps to call an ambulance. Rider, still on all fours, screamed and pushed as bystanders watched in disbelief. Lucas supported her head as Jones guided the baby out.
Lucas then sat back to back with Jones as she held her seconds-old son, Tobin “Toby” Thomas Rider. An ambulance arrived shortly after and paramedics gave baby Toby a clean bill of health.
The couple said Lucas was quick-thinking and calm, intuiting what they needed in real time.
“I would not have traded Natalie for anybody in that situation,” Jones said. “I’m just so thankful that she was a part of that, and that she supported us the way that she did. She really played her part perfectly, and was so sweet to us. I really, really appreciated her being there, and I’m glad she had that experience with us.”
Lucas said the experience was profoundly fulfilling and pointed out the irony is as a lifeguard, “you’re trained for death rather than life, so it was a very eye-opening experience.” In this case, rather than preventing death, she was helping to welcome new life. During her training and certification, Lucas learned how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation, first aid and water rescues. Helping someone give birth was certainly not a part of the curriculum.
Read more
